A review by erine
Eleanor Roosevelt, Fighter for Justice: Her Impact on the Civil Rights Movement, the White House, and the World, by Ilene Cooper
4.0
Very readable.
I appreciated the nuance taken with Eleanor Roosevelt’s approach to racism and antisemitism. The author largely avoided making Eleanor into a flawless heroine and tried to frankly address her flaws and hiccups.
Missing: any mention of Eleanor’s extramarital relationships.
Unfortunate resonance for today, including references to racially integrating the military (echoing current comments about women, gay and transgender people) and the reluctance to accept sufficient refugees ahead of the violence in Europe (the comment about Nazi spies potentially posing as refugees nearly made me spit). It seems as though if history doesn’t exactly repeat itself, event for event, we are incapable of heeding its warnings. An echo here, a similarity there, is never enough for folks to sit up and take notice.
I appreciated the nuance taken with Eleanor Roosevelt’s approach to racism and antisemitism. The author largely avoided making Eleanor into a flawless heroine and tried to frankly address her flaws and hiccups.
Missing: any mention of Eleanor’s extramarital relationships.
Unfortunate resonance for today, including references to racially integrating the military (echoing current comments about women, gay and transgender people) and the reluctance to accept sufficient refugees ahead of the violence in Europe (the comment about Nazi spies potentially posing as refugees nearly made me spit). It seems as though if history doesn’t exactly repeat itself, event for event, we are incapable of heeding its warnings. An echo here, a similarity there, is never enough for folks to sit up and take notice.